Cork & Munster Wedding Photographers

CAPTURING THE MOMENT AT A WEDDING

O Connor Mary P — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:43:39 +0000

CAPTURING THE MOMENT AT A WEDDING
What makes a moment? Any wedding photojournalist will tell you that the very notion of ‘making’ a moment disqualifies it from actually being a moment. So perhaps the more pointed question is: What is not a moment?

The First Dance

A Fathers Kiss

: The Wedding Cake

The Bridesmaids Legs

CAPTURING THE MOMENT AT A WEDDING
“A moment is not two hands, two rings over the bouquet. The flowers, the wedding dress pictures – those are not moments,” says wedding photographer Mick O Brien. “Those are clichés that have traditionally been taken by photographers. They are details of the day.”

Mick O Brien, broadening the concept of what a moment is not: “Anything that is staged,” he states. He believes that when a photographer asks the bride, groom or guest to do anything at all, he becomes a part of the moment instead of the person capturing it. It can’t be a moment, he argues, when a photographer’s presence is known, and the subjects are acting for the camera. By his definition, a moment is “that time when the subject is so involved in what they’re doing, that they’re totally unaware that anyone is recording the moment.”

Flower Girl Thinking

“A moment is when the brother in law jumps on the table and starts singing a song during the reception. That’s a moment,” Mick says. “If you can recreate something, then it’s not a moment. Good moments are fleeting. Good moments are one-of-a-kind. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.”

Which is why anticipating the moment is so crucial.

ANTICIPATION, DILIGENCE, AND PATIENCE
There are foreseeable moments during a wedding that every wedding photographer should learn to look for. Once you learn to predict, advises Mick, you can make sure you’re in the right place to get the best shot.

Like the first time the father sees the bride in the wedding dress & that has the potential of being a real moment; and you should be ready in case it does. Thus Mick puts himself in a place where he can capture the moment should it occur.

Trash The dress

Throwing Rice

But a little trickier are the completely unexpected moments, which often make the best photographs of all.

“You can’t plan for it. You can try to anticipate when it might occur, but when a great picture happens, it’s great because you can’t expect what’s going to happen,” says Mary O Connor. “You have to be able to react in a millisecond. If you see something and then you pick up your camera, the moment is already gone.” Diligence and patience, she says, are two of the most important hallmarks of capturing these fleeting moments. But paramount to everything is the ability to think clearly and quickly. “More than having a decent piece of equipment or a fast lens, the most important tool for the photographer is her brain,” she explains. The camera has to be ready to fire instantly, sometimes from the hip, and you can’t be off letting your mind wander. “I like to think I can react almost instantly,” she says. ” My training as a Press photographer in Europe has helped a lot, if you hesitate at all the moment is gone”

: Just one more thing before you go in Mum

To react is to anticipate and then respond with action. Like other good photojournalists, Mary depends on the shared human experience to help her navigate this nebulous territory. “We’re all made up of our experiences, and we all have universal moments that we share as human beings. I have that common ground with everyone,” Mary says. “I hear the sounds, and see the signs as a weatherman would. I observe the elements, the words spoken, and anticipate, and I predict that something will happen at a certain time. I have my cameras around my neck and shoulders and make split decisions on what lens is the one to use. I see how the subject is relating to the others in frame, while paying attention to the background. In an instant, the image is there and gone.”

And once the moment is gone, you don’t ask the bride, groom, or guests to do it again so you can capture it. That’s a set-up, not a moment. “If you want to be a real journalist,” Mary says, “you do not stage any pictures. If you stage something, it becomes a portrait.Naturally you need certain group photos and portraits but you shouldnt have to ask the bride and groom to redo the first kiss as a married couple”

A lot of photographers, she says, don’t have a problem with the coaxed moment. You get a picture out of it, but it’s not a real moment. And that’s acceptable, as long as you’r not passing it off as wedding photojournalism.

“Photojournalism has deep roots, representing reality in a truthful way. If you set up a photo at a newspaper, you get fired,” she says. Mary has a background in newspaper photojournalism, and fashion where one learned how to approach subjects with integrity.

“A photojournalist never directs. He’s reactionary, not proactive. It’s what separates true photojournalism from photography,” says Mick.

MORE MEANINGFUL PHOTOGRAPHS
“My pictures, my weddings are real moments. The bride isn’t always perfect, but the moment is real. It really happened,” says Mick. “When the bride looks at it, she’s not going to notice an imperfection; she’s going to remember that moment. There’s more of an emotional tie.”

: The Flower Girls

Aside from your ethical obligation to the very definition of wedding photojournalism, anticipating and capturing a true moment yields photographs that are linked back to real memories for the bride and groom. If they were asked to pose, then that’s what they’ll remember when they look back at the photograph.

We are listed on Irelands Website Directory

Nevermind the Photographs!

O Connor Mary P — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:35:23 +0000

Nevermind the Photographs -

Why your photographer could be the most important part of your wedding day!

Do I look ok? Is the dress all right

Nobody is better placed to help your wedding day along than your chosen wedding photographer. A bold statement, but stay with me.

You’ve paid out a small fortune for other people to look after everything, and you’ll be a little bit pre-occupied of course, what with getting married etc.

The groom will go along with whatever you want, darling. As will dads. Men, huh?

Mums will help a little, enough, or a lot…I’m not going there.

And your friends have come for the party.

The Wedding Reception

Your cake and flowers will be delivered. The DJ will set up later.

The venue will feed and water you. And the 90 other people you’ve invited. But not at the church, or on the boat, or even the dancefloor.

The dance floor

Only your wedding photographer will be focused on you through all of it. To record the day’s events, we have to always be there…around…watching. Not in your face, in the background. Experience tells us when to expect things to happen, when to nudge them along and when to stay out of the way. We might take photos of your flowers, your table plans, your decorations, but we will always know where you are and when. Right up until it’s time to leave.

We’ve joked with grooms and best men to calm their nerves.

We’ve told the bride she looks wonderful seconds before she faces the world.

We’ve asked the flower girls to jump on the page boys, just to see what happens.

We’ve filled-up when your dad’s voice cracked during his speech.

We’ve made friends with your labrador!

We’ve taken you both aside for a few minutes to give you a breather and remind you you’re there for each other.

In love

Oh, and we’ve taken a few photographs too!

Reportage Style Wedding Photography & Videos

Have you chosen the church ?

O Connor Mary P — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:16:15 +0000

A Wedding of Your Own
http://gettingmarried.ie
Padraig McCarthy Congratulations on making the decision to marry one another! Following on this central decision, there are some other steps to take. 1. Since you are looking at gettingmarried.ie, developed by ACCORD and CatholicIreland.net, it is likely that you would like to celebrate your wedding in a Catholic church. This is an important decision. For this, it is necessary that one or both of you are Catholics. It is also important that your faith in Jesus Christ influences your lives, since this is part of what you will be saying by celebrating your wedding in a Catholic church. If it is the case that, even if you were baptized and brought up as Catholics, neither of you has let this be an influence in the way you live your lives in recent years, then we encourage you to think of what you can do to make a fresh start. If, on the other hand, you do not really want your following of Jesus Christ to play any part in your lives as individuals and as a married couple, then it is important that you consider whether it would be more honest to arrange your wedding elsewhere. You may be surprised that we say this. But we have good reason. A church is not just a traditional setting for a wedding. Nor is it just, perhaps, an attractive place for taking photographs. Nor is it a place to choose, because perhaps your family or families would expect it. Celebrating your wedding in a church says that you really do want the God of love in your lives; that you want Jesus Christ to guide your lives; that you want the Holy Spirit to bring you the wisdom and understanding and courage and gentleness and all of the other gifts you will need to live a Christian marriage. To go through the church wedding celebration and not to mean it would mean that there is something untrue about your wedding day; and we are sure that you would not wish this on a day when you pledge your true love. Whether you celebrate your wedding in a Catholic church or in some other venue, we want it to reflect your true love. 2. So you’ve decided that yes, you really do want the kind of wedding we celebrate in the church. Next: where will you celebrate it? The first place to consider is the home parish where one of you lives at present. If this is where you have been a member of the parish, of the community of people who are followers of Jesus Christ, then this must be a significant factor. (If you say, ” But I don’t know anybody in the parish!” then perhaps you need to ask yourself why this is. Is it that you have not made your parish a part of your life and faith? If this is so, can you begin to do something about it now?) Of course, there can be good reason for celebrating a wedding elsewhere than in the parish you belong to. Unfortunately, it is not infrequent for a church to be chosen simply because it is convenient to the place where you wish to invite your guests to a meal afterwards; or because it is a beautiful location. We suggest that such reasons are very secondary to what your home parish community means to you. Couples sometimes decide to celebrate their wedding far away, perhaps abroad, in order to have a less expensive wedding. Yes, there can be expectations (your own, or those of other people) which you may feel as pressure not to marry in your home parish. We encourage you not to let such expectations control your decision; make the decision which is right for you; and it is possible to go against the trend, and have a less expensive wedding at home. It really is possible to have a very inexpensive wedding in your home parish. Perhaps you could even help in setting the trend! 3. So when you have made your decisions on these matters, what do you do next? First thing is to make contact with the parish or church where you would like to celebrate your wedding. In Ireland, it is necessary to do this at least three months beforehand; frequently, couples arrange this a year ahead, or even more. Do this before you make any arrangements about a reception for your guests, if you are planning one. One of the staff of the church will be able to give you whatever local information you need as regards the ceremony, and let you know what documents need to be prepared beforehand. The principal form is called the Prenuptial Enquiry. This is used for all the basic information. A recently-issued Certificate of your Baptism and Confirmation will be needed , this should be obtained about six months before the wedding date. The Certificate of your Baptism can be obtained from the church where you were baptised. The Certificate of Confirmation can be obtained from the church where you were confirmed; however, if this is already noted on the Baptism Certificate, you may not need a separate Confirmation Certificate. You also need to give notice to the local Registrar of Marriages (that’s government, not church) at least three months beforehand. 4. If you are aware of any special factors for either of you, it is important to mention this to the person preparing your church papers: for example, if either of you is not a Catholic, or was married before, etc. 5. You also need to check clearly from the beginning about who will assist at your wedding , usually, in Ireland, this is a priest. Before you fix a date, make sure that the priest is available , he may have other prior commitments. If you are planning to marry in a parish which is not the home parish of either of you, there may be a requirement that you arrange for a priest to come for your wedding, since the priest(s) in the parish of the wedding may not be in a position to facilitate you. You will plan your own ceremony in conjunction with the priest who will assist. (The priest does not marry you! You are the ones who marry one another; the priest assists, and is an official witness along with the two legal witnesses you yourselves choose , usually the Bridesmaid and Best Man. 6. You decide not just the details (readings, etc.) of the celebration, but the kind of celebration. You have a choice of having a Wedding Celebration, or a Wedding Mass which includes the wedding ceremony. Either is a perfectly good choice. If one of you is not a Catholic, it may be good to decide for the Wedding Celebration, so that there would be no lack of inclusion of all for example in familiarity with Mass or in receiving Holy Communion, both for the one who is not Catholic, and for guests who not. 7. Check to find out local arrangements about the ceremony itself, and matters such as flowers, music, etc. Get contact details for any people you will need to arrange these with. 8. Ask about the financial arrangements with the church or parish. There may be a minimum requested contribution; you will usually find that this is a very tiny proportion of what is spent for the wedding day. Since the wedding celebration in the church is the central event of the wedding day, we encourage you to think generously. Add up what the wedding expenses are , rings, clothes, transport, flowers, food, music, photography, etc. , and remember that none of these is as central as the wedding celebration in the church. So, if this is really important to you, perhaps you would consider the following: If you are celebrating your wedding in one of your home parishes, and you have already been contributing to that parish for two years or more, think of contributing between two and five percent of the total cost of the day. If you are celebrating your wedding in one of your home parishes, but have not been contributing to that parish for a significant time, think of contributing between five and ten percent of the total cost of the day. 9. Who to invite? This can be a difficult decision, especially not wishing to offend anyone. Unfortunately, this is often decided on the basis of how many can be invited to a reception afterwards. We encourage you to think more broadly. You do not need to restrict the number you invite to the wedding celebration in the church (except, of course, according to the capacity of the church building itself!) There may, of course, be some who would not wish to come to the church celebration, and will come only to a reception afterwards. But we encourage you to invite everyone to the celebration in the church! 10. It may seem a trivial thing, or unrealistic; but think of this: will you deliberately plan so that the wedding celebration in the church begins not more than ten minutes after the time you set? If you are planning to take a flight or a boat trip, you would do all in your power to be there on time. If you had an appointment with a medical consultant, or a legal person, how would it be if you were twenty or thirty minutes late, or more? Your wedding is far more important. And there are people apart from your guests who are involved (those who look after the church, etc.) who may have other commitments. It simply a matter of showing normal courtesy (and love!) for others. 11. In the time before the wedding, you will be able to plan the details of the celebration. You will, of course, have many other things to do. If you have not already done so, we encourage you to take part in a Marriage Preparation course. These are offered by ACCORD all over Ireland, and also by various other agencies. You can enquire about such a course when you are booking your wedding, or when you go to have your documentation prepared. Preparation may be with a group of others preparing for their marriage; or it may be as an individual couple. Couples sometimes feel that, in their circumstances, they do not need a Marriage Preparation course; or they may feel shy at the thought of it! We cannot say whether you need such preparation (although some certainly do). We do say that you deserve a Marriage Preparation course! You are planning to take a step which will affect the rest of your lives ,thirty, forty, fifty years or perhaps more. This is a far more important step than, for example, buying a house. For other important steps you may take which you have not done before, you are likely to look for all the information and preparation you can get; all the more so for this, so that you can get the most out of both the wedding day and all your following days and years together. No ,a Marriage Preparation course will not tell you how to live your relationship. It will give you some insights into the experience of others, so that you can talk between yourselves on a stronger basis, and so help your relationship grow. And, on a group course, there will other couples preparing for marriage whom you will meet, so you should not feel like fishes out of water! 12. Most of all, in the time between now and your wedding day, no matter how many other things there are to be done, and no matter what the pressures in work or to earn more money, be sure to set aside good time for yourselves , and not just when there’s nothing else to do, or you’re too tired to do anything else! And just as you would really want to do that, even when it is difficult, ask what you can do to set aside good time for God in your lives. If you do this, alone and together, this will give you an extra foundation for your love and unity; and your preparation for the wedding ceremony will mean so much more.

Reportage Style Wedding Photography & Videos

O Connor Mary P — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 10:46:10 +0000

Yes! Its here, Wedding Photography without all the extra costs. Get a Professional Reportage Style Photoshoot on that most important day of your life for less than €900 . Self publish on the web or in your own beautifull photobook. We do not have a shop or staff that need to be paid so our prices are real.

We use http://www.lulu.com/en/products/photo_books/?cid=en_home_publish where you can get your wedding album made for €20.00

or the amazing Italian Craftsmen at http://www.graphistudio.com/en/products/Book/index.html

The choice is yours. There really are no extras you design your wedding package to suit your budget. With the current credit crunch it makes sense to save on costs when you can. Call us to make an appointment and to see our work.

Call 087 9647413 or e mail us on munsterweddings@gmail.com

Cork & Munster Wedding Photographers

CAPTURING THE MOMENT AT A WEDDING

Nevermind the Photographs!

Nevermind the Photographs -

Have you chosen the church ?

Reportage Style Wedding Photography & Videos

We use http://www.lulu.com/en/products/photo_books/?cid=en_home_publish where you can get your wedding album made for €20.00

or the amazing Italian Craftsmen at http://www.graphistudio.com/en/products/Book/index.html

The choice is yours. There really are no extras you design your wedding package to suit your budget. With the current credit crunch it makes sense to save on costs when you can. Call us to make an appointment and to see our work.